Balance game apparatus



J 1968 E. c. KANZLER, JR

BALANCE GAME APPARATUS Filed Nov. 8, 1965 INVENTOR. EPA/55f c. KANZLER, JA?

ATTOE/VE Y United States Patent 3,389,910 BALANCE GAME APPARATUS Ernest C. Kanzler, Jr., 1014 Moraga Drive, Los Angeles, Calif. 90047 Filed Nov. 8, 1965, Ser. No. 506,782 Claims. (Cl. 273-1) This invention relates to a balancing game and has for an object to provide apparatus, involving balancing skill, that visually shows the degree of such skill so that the relative skill of two or more persons may be scored or tallied.

Another object of the invention is to provide game apparatus, as above characterized, that visually shows the tally or score to both the participant and those observing his balancing feats.

A further object of the invention is to provide game apparatus that may be scored at increasingly greater tallies according to the retention of balance of the participant on an increasingly more unbalanced condition of the apparatus.

This invention also has for its objects to provide such means that are positive in operation, convenient in use, easily installed in a working position and easily disconnected therefrom, economical of manufacture, relatively simple, and of general superiority and serviceability.

The above objects are realized in game apparatus that comprises a cylinder, and a balance or teeter board, the latter being adapted to be placed upon the former, and to extend thereacross. A person with his feet on the opposite ends of the board, seeks to retain a balanced position thereon while shifting his weight in one direction and/or the other to cause the cylinder to roll so that, at times, the middle of the board engages the cylinder and at others, portions of the board nearer one foot than the other engage the cylinder. Since more skill is required to retain a balanced position when one end of the board extends further from the cylinder than does the other, the board is provided with a scale or other markings which show the state of balance or imbalance of the board relative to the cylinder so that these positions may be credited with tallies or scores commensurate to such balance or imbalance. Such markings may be read at the points of tangency of the board and cylinder, the latter optionally being provided with markings read in connection with those on the board to better enable accuracy of scoring.

The invention also comprises novel details of construction and novel combinations and arrangements of parts, which will more fully appear in the course of the following description and which is based on the accompanying drawing. However, said drawing merely shows, and the following description merely describes, one embodiment of the present invention, which is given by way of illustration or example only.

In the drawing, like reference characters designate similar parts in the several views.

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view showing the present game apparatus in operative position.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of said apparatus in operative engagement of its parts.

The present game apparatus comprises a roundsectioned base member shown as cylinder 5 that is adapted to roll along a surface 6, as a floor, pavement, or the like, a teeter or balance board 7 adapted to be disposed across said base cylinder, normal to the axis of the latter, and to shift, during rolling movement'of the cylinder, to bring the end thereof at different distances from the line of engagement with the cylinder, a tally scale 8 is provided on said board to visually show the balanced or unbalanced position of the board on the cylinder, and optionally, markings 9 are provided on the cylindrical surface of the 3,389,910 Patented June 25, 1968 cylinder and may be read in connection with the scale 8 to enable visual accuracy of scoring or tallying the participants balancing skill.

The cylinder 5 may be made of wood or plastic mat rials. Its diameter may approach five inches or be of such size as to afford desired clearance, from the surface 6, of the ends of the board disposed thereon, during a balancing trial. The cylinder length may vary, but one that is at least twice as long as the board 7 is wide, provides for desired rolling contact with the surface 6 with minimum slippage relating to said surface or to the board.

As an alternative to the cylindrical form of the member 5, the same may be steeply frusto-conical so it will have a tendency to roll in an arcuate path rather than along a straight line, thereby increasing the degree of skill entailed in retaining balance on a board 7 engaged with such a frusto-conical base member.

The teeter board 7, whether of wood, plastic, metal or other substantially rigid materials, may, in practice, have a length between twenty and twenty-four inches, although it may be made in various sizes for use by children and adults. In any case, said board is preferably of a width to accommodate at least the soles of a participants feet, end areas 10 being provided for this purpose. Said end areas may be wider, if desired, so that the entire foot may be supported.

It will be clear that a person may place his feet 11 upon the areas 10 of the board with said board resting upon the cylinder 5 while transverse thereto. Then, according to said persons skill, weight is shifted to cause the cylinder to roll so that a point on said board, off the center thereof, is engaged with the cylinder. Such a shift will increase the need for skill in retaining balance. The greater the differences or lengths of the lever or arm ends of the board, the more skill is required since balance is being effected on a memberthe cylinder 7that is offset with respect to the body of the person on the board.

The tally scale 8 enables visual determination of such offset so the same may be scored as against anothers skill. In this case, the scale 8 is shown with a centrally located zero mark 12 adjacent both edges of the top face of the board as well as an aligned zero mark 13 on each side edge of the board. Said scale is provided on the board top with graduations or marks 14, uniformly or on varying spacing from the mark 12 on both sides of mark 12, and with respectively aligned marks 15 along both side edges of said board. The marks or graduations 14 and 15 become larger in value as the ends of the board are approached.

While shown as line graduations, the marks 12 to 15 may be provided in the form of differently colored stripes or zones, each color, from a central zone, being given a different scoring value, as above indicated. The tally scale 8, in whatever form, is visible to the person on the board Who sees the marks or zones on the top face of the board, while others may see these marks or zones as well as those on the side edges of the board.

The tally marks may be read with respect to the tangency thereof on the cylinder 5. As an aid to accurate determination of such tangency, the markings 9 on the cylinder may be provided. Thus, scoring values may be readily arrived at by the close tangency relationship between the edge marks or zones 13 and 15 to the marks 9 on the cylinder.

While the foregoing has illustrated and described what is now contemplated to be the best mode of carrying out the invention, the construction is, of course, subject to modification without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it is not desired to restrict the invention to the particular form of construction illustrated and described, but to cover all modifications that may fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described this invention, what is claimed and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. Game apparatus comprising:

(a) a round-sectioned base member adapted to roll on a support surface,

(b) an elongated board adapted to be disposed transversely on said base member with its ends on 0pposite sides thereof and maintained at various positions of balance by a person having his feet resting on the board ends and shifting his balance, accordingly, and

(c) a scale along the intermediate portion of the board and comprising tally values that increase from the middle of the scale toward the opposite ends thereof.

2. Game apparatus according to claim 1 in which said scale is applied to both the top face and the opposite elongated edges of the board so as to be readable from above as well as from the opposite sides.

3. Game apparatus according to claim 1 in which the scale has its lowest tall-y value at the mid point of the board.

4. Game apparatus according to claim 2 in which the scale, on the top face, is applied adjacent to both side edges of the board.

5. Game apparatus according to claim 1 in which longitudinal markings on the cylindrical surface of the cylinder cooperate with the scale on the board to show the tally value that is located on the marking of the cylinder which is tangent to the scale, thereby enabling scoring the degree of unbalance of the board on the cylinder.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,764,411 9/1956 Washburn 272-57 RICHARD C. PINKHAM, Primary Examiner. 

1. GAME APPARATUS COMPRISING: (A) A ROUND-SECTIONED BASE MEMBER ADAPTED TO ROLL ON A SUPPORT SURFACE, (B) AN ELONGATED BOARD ADAPTED TO BE DISPOSED TRANSVERSELY ON SAID BASE MEMBER WITH ITS ENDS ON OPPOSITE SIDES THEREOF AND MAINTAINED AT VARIOUS POSITIONS OF BALANCE BY A PERSON HAVING HIS FEET RESTING ON THE BOARD ENDS AND SHIFTING HIS BALANCE, ACCORDINGLY, AND 